Beef Wellington

Having successfully achieved a long-term cooking goal I decided to attempt another.  I have only ever eaten Beef Wellington once.  That was about twenty-eight years ago, made by my cousin Mary.  I recall being impressed that she had attempted such a feat.  I have often thought about it but never gone any further.  Buoyed by the success of the minimum effort tartare, I decided to go for the complex and have a go at the Wellington.  The first step was to find a recipe and Eat your Books again came to the rescue.  I searched the entire EYB  collection where I located a classic beef Wellington by Sophie Grigson.  There is even a helpful video which I recommend you watch if you are planning to make this.
The recipe was for eight and I halved it.  I think any less won't work so well.  We froze the remaining portion for another occasion.  I pretty much followed the recipe as it was written.  I don't often do this but because I had no idea what I was doing, sticking to the blueprint seemed like the best approach.  It was actually very simple, especially because you could prepare so much ahead and there was no real time pressure.  I used ready-bought pastry and pate and homemade beef stock, which I always keep in the freezer.  Although the recipe suggests you do a lot of the prep the day before, I started at 11.00 a.m. on the day of eating and had no time issues.
I was very anxious about the crepes as I felt this was the part that might not work.  They were fine.  Just remember that when you are making crepes the first one out of the pan is always a dud.  Ensure you have enough mixture for one to discard - and roll up with sugar and lemon as a cook's treat.  The ones you are going to use cannot have any holes.
I followed the cooking instructions and I bought a meat thermometer.  This was invaluable as there is no way you can see or feel what is going on inside the pastry case.  In case you don't have a temperature equivalents guide - preheat the oven to 245.  Turn it straight down to 215 when you put the Wellington in and reduce to 200 after ten minutes.  My meat thermometer said 140 was rare so we went for that rather then the 135 suggested in this recipe.  It was closer to 35 minutes than 25 but watch at the end as the temperature increases quickly - 30 mins may be sufficient. Do invest in the meat thermometer if you don't already have one.  It was inexpensive and easy to use and really helpful.  I used the rest time to finish the sauce and steam the asparagus.  I just served this with asparagus and watercress, and would suggest any simple seasonal green or a salad. It all went very well but the meat did bleed a little into the crepes which were intended to prevent the pastry becoming soggy.  This meant the pastry was a little soggy at the bottom.  I did some further research and found a recipe that suggested to prevent this, substitute the crepe by a single sheet of filo pastry which may do the job better. 
I felt a meal of this splendour deserved a pudding  but I didn't want to go to any effort.  I had some cream in the fridge and syllabub came to mind.  I've never made this before either.  This time Sophie Grigson's mother, Jane, came to the rescue with a recipe called Elizabeth David's Everlasting Syllabub.  This was in Jane Grigson's English Food and apparently stems from Elizabeth David's An Omelette and a Glass of Wine, which surprisingly I don't have.  This is supposed to be started the night before but as I didn't think about it until mid-morning on the day of Wellington that didn't happen and it didn't seem to matter.  As soon as you can, steep the pared rind of a lemon in 100mls of white wine or sherry, 2 tbsp brandy and the juice of the lemon. Leave at least two hours and then strain the liquid into a bowl and dissolve 50g sugar.  Slowly pour in 300 ml cream and add a grating of nutmeg.  Beat the cream until it holds its shape and no longer.  It will curdle easily.  Spoon into serving glasses and store in a cool place but do not refrigerate.  Jane says this will keep for two days or more.  The alcohol may keep it fresh, but can you imagine leaving a delicious pudding sitting around for two days and not being tempted to eat it?  Serve with sponge fingers.  This was the perfect ending to the meal and I am now a syllabub convert.

Un soir a Paris

I am between jobs.  Really.  I start the new one on Monday.  I had planned a week of walking, gardening and cooking some of those meals I have been meaning to make at the end of a long day but there isn't the time.  But things don't always turn out.  Peter had a week of evening events at work and I ate a little more simply.  Thursday night he was in and I decided to make something I have wanted to make since I first encountered it at the Hofbrauhaus in Auckland when I was seventeen. My seventh form German class took our teacher there for dinner because we loved her and wanted to thank her for being such a great teacher.  Because of this experience I believed for many years that this classic French dish was German.  And for some reason I have never eaten it in Paris.
Often when I get an idea in my head it grows.  This was the case here.  A search on Eat your Books revealed that I have two recipes for steak tartare.  For those who don't know, Eat your Books is a recipe site that has indexed thousands of cooking books.  You add all your books and magazines then when you are looking for a recipie you type in a couple of ingredients and it tells you which book it is in.  Do investigate.  It is wonderful.  Was slightly scary to discover how many cook books I have. Does anyone care to guess?
Anyway back to my steak.  Rick Stein's French Odyssey and Sarah Woodward's The Food of France gave me the general idea.  I then thought we would start our evening with an aperitif and was thinking about accompanying this with buttered radishes, however I think this is best with freshly picked and I don't have any ready right now.  I was flicking thrrough the books and came up with seared scallops with puy lentils.  It's the scallop season so this seemed perfect.
First make a dressing for the scallops.  For a dozen scallops, heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a small saucepan and add four finely chopped cloves of garlic then four chopped tomatoes, skinned and deseeded and some finely chopped rosemary and thyme.  Simmer 10 minues or so until until it is pulpy.  In another small saucepan heat two tbsp red wine vinegar with one tsp caster sugar and reduce to about 2 tsp.  Add to the tomato sauce and season.  Set aside.  For two, cook about 1/4 cup puy lentils, season and dress with olive oil then keep warm while you enjoy your aperitif.  We had kir, which if you recall from an earlier post is creme de cassis with white wine.  When you are ready to eat finish off the tomato sauce with a tbsp of lemon juice and a tsp of chopped basil and parsley. Season and heat gently while you cook the scallops.  Heat the pan then add a litle olive oil and sear the scallops a minute or two on each side.  I don't remove the roe and I can't understand why people do that.  Serve with the lentils and pour the sauce over the scallops.
For the steak you want about 100-120g of fillet steak per person.  Trim off any fat or sinew then chop very finely. Season well with salt and pepper  This took quite a while so allow time.  You want to serve it well chilled so chop it first then put in a covered bowl in the fridge while you prepare the rest.
Accompany with with finely chopped shallots, parsley, cornichons, capers and Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, tabasco and olive oil.  You could serve it ready mixed but we did ours at the table because we wanted to do them slightly differently.  Shape the beef into neatish rounds on a plate and make an indent in the centre.  Top each round with an egg yolk and serve with shoestring fries. 
We had macarons with coffee.  Not home made, I am almost (but not quite) too ashamed to say, but locally made nonetheless.  Finish the meal with a good brandy.  To transport yourselves completely to France accompany with Django Reinhardt and Edith Piaf.

Home and abroad

It's been a while but I find myself with a moment to spare and I thought I'd catch up with you.  We've been away.  This isn't an excuse but I thought I'd start by sharing some of the delights we ate while we were away.  We travelled to England and Scotland and I made a side trip to Rogat in the Netherlands.  We ate some amazing food and I am not going to mention the not so great - best forgotten.
There are some wonderful places to eat in London.  We made a day trip to Hampstead Heath and I wanted to eat at the Spaniard's Inn.  The food wasn't this good last time I was there.  We sat in the sun and enjoyed a leisurely lunch and a pint.  From the June menu, I had the Scotch egg and Peter had the terrine. We then shared the salad of bulgar wheat, quinoa, lentils, soy flakes, radish, pomegranate & asparagus.  There was one surprise with the salad - no asparagus.  And a slightly odd response to its absence.  The waitress had no idea what asparagus was and peered at the plate uncertain what was actually missing.  The chef and the duty manager were surprised that I had thought fit to mention its non-appearance.  That said, this was the best Scotch egg ever and  a wonderful salad sans asparagus.
I was keen to try out Ottolenghi's Soho offering, Nopi.  We couldn't get a table in the main restaurant but there was space at the downstairs bar.  It was a great atmosphere and great food.  We had a selection of dishes to share.  I was browsing in the Time Out and I found a review for another Middle Eastern restaurant in Soho, the Palomar.  If you only eat at one Middle Eastern restaurant in your life, make it this one.  Again we couldn't get a table but we did secure a perch at the bar where we could observe the food being prepared and the chefs having fun while they cooked.  
We had two great meals in Glasgow.   We were taken by friends to Two Fat Ladies at the Buttery.  This was a five-star restaurant specialising in fish.  We don't often eat out like this.  At the other end of the scale we went to a family run Italian restaurant, Sarti, which is definitely worth a visit. 
Phoebe searched out another amazing find in Canterbury.  Next to the railway station is the Goods Shed where produce was once stored before being transported by train.  This is now a Farmer's Market and restaurant serving locally sourced seasonal food.  I can't describe the meal - you'll have to try it out for yourself.
I also enjoyed home cooking in the village of Rogat in the Netherlands province of Drenthe.  I enjoyed traditional Dutch cooking including Stamppot, made with endive as a summer substitute for kale, and chervil soup.  Most of what I ate was produced from the back yard including eggs and honey.   
Since we've been back we have been enjoying some of the coldest weather Wellington can throw at us, so we thinking slow cooking and lots of winter greens.  Luckily the kale, cavalo nero and rainbow chard in the garden is keeping us going.  We have a new eatery in Wellington, Loretta, sister restaurant to Floriditas.  They have the ultimate comfort rice dish  - warm rice with broken sausage and thyme.  I am making a basic risotto with a sprinkle of chilli flakes and a handful of thyme leaves in with the very finely chopped onions.  I used pork & fennel sausages, skin removed and broken up.  Cook these lightly before adding the rice.  Add extra stock so the resulting dish is quite sloppy.  Add extra thyme at the end and omit cheese.  Truly.   I served with  leeks and winter greens from the garden.
You should also try a potato tagine-style stew which has become a staple at our table.  For four to six, soften a finely sliced onion and two roughly chopped carrots with a pinch of salt, in a heavy bottomed pan.   Add a teaspoon each of ground coriander, cumin, ginger, turmeric and paprika and a pinch of chilli flakes along with three crushed garlic cloves, zest of a lemon, tbsp clear honey, a couple of bay leaves and three long green chillis left whole.  Cook for a couple of minutes.  Add scrubbed red skinned waxy potatoes cut into chunks and turn in the spices. Add a tin of tomatoes, a tin of chickpeas, two cups chicken or vegetable stock and bring to the boil.  Cover and simmer fotry minutes.  Add a handful of green olives at the end and serve with dollops of Greek yoghurt (I use Zany Zeus) and scatter with toasted pumpkin seeds, a tsp of paprika and some finely chopped parsley (or coriander).  You will make this again and again.
 

Indian theme

When there are only two of you it can be tricky to manage leftovers.  Freezing is useful but not everything freezes.  Often you want to make up a meal of leftovers later in the week but the meals you have eaten earlier in the week don't go well together.  I had the idea of cooking to a theme so that we bought less and used everything.  Basing the week on Indian flavours we started with meatballs and paneer. I didn't use all the paneer in the first meal and not all the meatballs were eaten but they were able to be incorporated later.
Sticking with the Indian theme I turned to Jack Santa Maria who as usual provided the answer.  A very simple soup comprising primarily lentils and stock.  For two, saute a finely sliced onion, crushed garlic and a bay leaf in ghee.  Add 1/2 cup red lentils with 2 tbsp rice and 2 1/2 cups vegetable stock.  Bring to the boil.  Simmer until the lentils are cooked.  Add 1 tsp garam masala and season with salt and pepper.  To serve squeeze in some lemon juice and swirl though a handful of shredded spinach to wilt.  Jack didn't suggest this but I had some spinach which needed to be used.  Although this sounds way too simple it was just perfect.   In fact I was so inspired by this soup that I looked to see if Jack had written any more books and I found two - Traditional Indian Cookery and Indian Meat & Fish Cookery.  I ordered both of them and they are now waiting at Max's flat in London for us to collect when we visit in June.  Look out for more Indian cooking in July.
I then made a very simple aubergine curry by roasting a halved aubergine smeared with curry paste in the oven for 20 minutes at 200.  If you score the aubergine halves into cubes without cutting the skin it will cut up easily later.  When the aubergine is cooked cut it up and return to the pan with 1/2 cup vegetable stock and 200g yoghurt.  Stir to mix through and cook in the oven about 10 minutes until the sauce is heated through and thickened a little. 
The next day heat up the left over aubergine with the left over meatballs & tomato sauce and the unused paneer.  It is a completely different meal but it all goes together.
And when you are eating an Indian meal don't forget shrikand, the wonderful sweet spiced yoghurt.  The perfect conclusion to any Indian themed meal.

Ottolenghi inspirations

I am a huge fan of Yotam Ottolenghi.  Twice recently I have watched him on the television and been inspired to rush off and make one of his dishes.  The first was a traditional Cretan dish which I served for Harriet's birthday.  It doesn't sound so exciting on paper but it was inspirational to watch and sensational to eat. 
This recipe uses a traditional Cretan dried bread, dakos, which I couldn't find.  Yotam suggest substituting Swedish krisprolls or Italian friselle.  I broke 400g of staleish sourdough into chunks and baked on a tray at 100 until they were dried out completely but not coloured. About 20 minutes.
To serve 6-8, grate half a kilo of ripe tomatoes into a bowl.  This sounds tricky but basically grate on a box grate until you are left with a piece of skin in your hand.  It is a bit messy.  Chop another kilo of tomatoes into 1 cm dice.  Mix with 1 diced red onion, 4 cloves crushed garlic, 3 tbsp olive oil, salt & pepper.  In another bowl mix together 200ml olive oil, 100ml red wine vinegar, salt & pepper.  This may seem like a lot of oil but you will want this much.  In a pan lightly saute 2 cans of chickpeas with a little olive oil, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp sweet paprika, 2 tsp ground cumin & a little salt.  Spread your dried bread in a shallow baking dish large enough to hold them snugly in a single layer.  Pour over the oil and vinegar mix, then spoon over the tomato mix. Next cover with the chickpeas.  Dot with chunks of feta (300g).  Scatter over basil & drizzle with a little olive oil.  Bake at 200 for 25 minutes until the feta starts to colour. Delicious!
The second was inspired by a meal made in Jerusalem on a Plate - split wheat and chard with pomegranate molasses.  I am not sure what exactly split wheat is but I have some freekeh in the cupboard and this was good or you could even use pearl barley but cook it longer.  For four, start by softening 2 thinly sliced leeks in olive oil.  Add the finely chopped stalks from about 600g chard.  After a couple of minutes add the sliced chard leaves.  Cook for a couple of minutes then add 2 tbsp light brown sugar, 3 tbsp pomegranate molasses, 200g of whatever wheat or grain you are using, 500g chicken stock and season.  Bring to a simmer, cover & cook about an hour. At the end of cooking remove the lid and cook down until all the liquid has evaporated and the molasses & sugar are beginning to caramelise.  You could add more molasses at the end.
You could have this as a light meal on it own but it was delicious with pork and courgette patties.  The recipe was for turkey but we had pork mince in the freezer.  I reaslised aftrewards it may not have been quite the thing because this was either a Jewish or Palestinian muslim dish.  Neither of those cultures eat pork but we do and it worked very well.  Use whatever mince you like.  First make a sour cream sauce by mixing 100g sour cream, 150g thick greek yoghurt, 1tsp lemoin juice, 1 crushed garlic clove, 1 tbsp olive oiul, 1tsp sumac, salt & pepper.  Set aside.
For the patties, in a large bowl mix 500g turkey, chicken or pork mince, 1 coarsely grated courgette, 3 finely sliced spring onions, 1 egg, 2 tbsp each chopped mint and parsley, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1/2 tsp cayenne, salt & pepper. Shape into patties and rest.  If the mix is too wet, add some breadcrumbs or  something to help it hold together.  I used bulgar wheat, but you need to soak it in cold water for 10 minutes first, then drain and squeeze out excess moisture.  To cook the patties sear on both sides in a frying pan then finish in a hot oven (220) for 6-8 minutes.  Serve with the wheat and yoghurt sauce.  This is a meal you will want to make again. 

Something fishy

A good friend gave me some freshly caught tuna last week and I made two delicious meals.  One of my favourite meals is something I first ate in 1976 while on holiday in Tahiti.  It is Tahiti's signature dish, e'ia ota, known in French as poisson cru.  It is so simple and quick to prepare and unbelievably delicious to eat.  For 2 hungry people you will want 250g very fresh tuna.  Cut the fish into 1-2cm pieces and put into a glass dish.  Squeeze over the juice of 2-3 limes depending on how juicy your limes are.  Refrigerate 10-15 minutes.  No longer.  Mix in some salad vegetables.  I used finely grated carrot, very finely diced red onion, finely diced green capsicum, finely julienned radish, finely sliced spring onion, chopped tomato.  You are aiming for freshness and texture.  Add 80-100 ml coconut milk and season with salt.  Refrigerate briefly & serve on a bed of shredded lettuce.  Tahitians may add sliced hard boiled egg and I might try that on another occasion. You will be amazed at how good this is. 
With the remaining tuna (I had 500g) we turned to the Mediterranean.  First make a paste.  In a pestle & mortar smash up a small piece of fresh or dried red chilli with 11/2 tbsp coriander seeds.  Add a small piece of crushed garlic, a good handful finely chopped basil and parsley, salt& pepper, juice of 1/2 a lemon.  Mix well to make a paste.  Rub on both sides of the piece of tuna.  If you are buying tuna steaks this is enough for 2 steaks.  Sear the tuna in a grill pan which has been lightly rubbed with olive oil.  About 1-2 minutes each side depending on the thickness of the fish.  You want them pink inside.  Serve with grilled courgette and sauteed potato slices.
These meals will make you want to learn to fish if you don't already know.

I See Red

You really can eat beetroot every day.  Beetroot burgers will please both omnivores and herbivores.  Saute 1 finely chopped onion for about 5 mins until soft then add 1 peeled coarsely grated beetroot, 2 cloves crushed garlic, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp zahtar with a pinch of salt & cook 5 mins.  Stir frequently to prevent the mix catching.  Put the cooked mix into a food processor with 2 tins drained chickpeas, 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, zest of a lemon, 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs.  Season and pulse until  well combined but not completely smooth.  Divide into patties of a size you want and chill for 30 minutes.  Cook the patties in oil 3 mins each side.  You can serve them on buns but if you think the addition of two hefty pieces of bread is too much, do as we did and just serve with the toppings.  Consider lettuce, avocado, grated carrot or beetroot, sprouts, tomato, feta or even a fried egg.
Beetroot risotto is a favourite of mine.  In one pan slowly steam a finely grated beetroot and in the other make a risotto base.  The beetroot will take 40 mins or so to soften so start it first.  This is the same principle as the beetroot relish I developed a while ago and you could add onions but you will also have shallots or leeks in your risotto base.  When both components are ready combine in the risotto pan and add juice and zest of a lemon with a knob of butter.  Cover & rest 5 minutes.  Season and serve dotted with ricotta or feta.  I had some unused ricotta in the fridge and that worked wonderfully.  I think it is better than Parmesan with the beetroot.  Make risotto cakes with the leftovers & serve with a poached egg.
As an aside, I used the rest of the ricotta in beefburgers which was a Nigel Slater idea and made wonderful moist burgers.  We had bought the ricotta to stuff courgette flowers and not done it.  Really I think that it is a fiddly job and I'd rather let a cafe do the work.  Floriditas do them beautifully.  We served the burgers with our now flourishing courgettes and the last of  the cranberry sauce.  Nigel suggests a tomato relish but I think that almost any relish you have in the fridge will do.
You will really impress with this colourful beetroot salad.  In a large bowl mix 3 peeled grated carrots, 2-3 radishes mandolined (you could substitute 1/2 celeriac), 2-3 beetroot peeled and grated (use 2 colours of you have them), 1 grated apple spritzed with lemon juice to prevent discolouration.  Make a dressing with 1 tbsp horseradish sauce, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice, 1 tsp English mustard, 1 clove crushed garlic, salt & pepper.  Combine with salad and garnish with cumin & pumpkin seeds and parsley. We had it on it's own but it would go well with any lean meat or fish or just a side of roasted potatoes.
Lastly a beetroot soup.  Put a largish beetroot in a baking tray with 1 cm water and bake at 200 for about an hour.  Cool (under cold water is fine) and peel.  In a pan soften 2 finely chopped onions then add 2 apples quartered (with a squeeze of lemon)  and the beetroot roughly chopped.  Pour on 1 1/2 litres chicken or vegetable stock, add 2 star anise & simmer 15 mins.  remove the star anise and blend with a hand blender until smooth.  Serve with snipped chives and a dollop of yoghurt mixed with horseradish.

Vegetable wonders

We still have plenty of beetroot and radishes.  I found a delicious new way to serve squid which has the added advantage of using some of the beetroot leaves along with spinach.  For four, saute a finely chopped red onion in a little olive oil then add 500g squid sliced into rings, with 1/4 cup white rice.  It may not seem like much rice but it is enough.  You don't want the rice to overwhelm.  The squid & spinach are the stars here.  Cook 3 minutes or so then add a tin of tomatoes and a handful of roughly chopped spinach & beetroot leaves with 2 tbsp chopped parsley.  Simmer 10 mins or until rice & squid are cooked.  Delicious.
Remember spicy bean stew?  This a herby version.  Saute a sliced leek in olive oil until soft then add 2 cloves chopped garlic and cook a minute or two.  Add a tin of tomatoes and a good handful of finely chopped herbs - parsley, thyme, chervil.  Cook about 10 minutes and if it looks dry add a splash of water.  At the end add some finely sliced spinach & beetroot leaves with a drained tin of canellini beans and cook until the greens are wilted and the beans are heated through.  Add a sprinkling of herbs to serve.
We went to friends for dinner, were served a wonderful meal and sent home with a bag of freshly picked runner beans.  I cooked these with herbs and served with steak and a corn and avocado salad.  For the beans, slice them thinly and cook in water about 10 mins & drain.  There were about 400g.   Heat a little olive oil & add a good handful of chopped mint, parsley, chervil & dill with 4 tsp capers, juice and zest of  a lemon, 1 tsp Dijon mustard, 2 small shallots finely chopped.  Stir in the beans & serve.  Add any leftovers to a salad the next day. 
For the corn salad, combine kernels from 2 cooked corn cobs or about 2 1/2 cups frozen, 4-5 tomatoes cut into wedges, 2 diced avocados & handful of basil leaves.  Toss with a herb dressing made by mixing in a food processor 3 handfuls basil leaves, 2 cloves of garlic, zest of a lemon, 1 1/2 cups olive oil & a pinch of salt.  This will keep in a jar in the fridge for a week & is also great with fish & freshly dug potatoes.
The garden is certainly serving us well.  On Sunday I tried to finish up odds and ends.  We bought some fish from the market & served with the last of the potatoes & aforementioned oil, a corn cob mixed with the last of the peas and the lone leek sauteed with the lone courgette.  The courgettes got off to a slow start but are coming on now.  I think it may have been the lack of sun as there was a shortage of female flowers on the plants and apparently they appear as the weather warms up.
I have been reading about Isabel (Mrs) Beeton's carrot jam which was intended as a kind of substitute for apricot jam.  On further investigation, I stumbled upon a treasure trove of vegetable jams from our old friend Hugh F-W.  Not chutney, but vegetable jams.  I started with the carrot version, which resembles a spicy marmalade with lots of peel and is delicious.  I am keen to try the green tomato but we didn't put in any tomatoes this year.  I may be able to muster up the pumpkin jam as we have a splendid crop and if the courgettes improve look out for courgette and lemon jam.
With the pumpkin I have already made what looks like the winter's supply of pumpkin soup.  I will be looking for smart ideas for pumpkin shortly. 

Beetroot ... and radishes

It was encouraging to see two new signed up followers and a suggestion for radishes - thank you, readers.  We are still in summer eating mode even though there is a dearth of summer weather. 
We have been working hard on both the beetroot and radishes.  We had end of season asparagus with a lamb fillet and a couscous salad.  For the couscous I mixed a little olive oil and lemon juice through the couscous while it was still warm and then tossed through a selection of salad veg - spring onions, capsicum, parsley, feta and, of course, radishes.  I served it with beetroot relish and yoghurt with mint.  I didn't really need both but the relish needed eating and I love lamb with minty yoghurt so I splurged and it was worth it.  Put lots of mint in the yoghurt.
We have taken a fancy to spring rolls. They are so easy.  Buy a pack of spring roll wrappers and some vermicelli.  Finely slice a selection of fresh vegetables and herbs, including radishes.  Toast and crush some skinned peanuts and/or cashews - maybe add a pinch of cumin.  Make a selection of dipping sauces.  Put a dish of warm water on the table and construct and eat spring rolls until you are replete.  On this occasion I thought we had more wraps in the cupboard than we did, however a squid tube from the freezer came to the rescue.  Salt and pepper squid rings were delicious dipped in the sauces.
We were visiting in Auckland and I thought I would contribute pudding.  Make a jelly by dissolving 2 tbsp sugar in 1/2 cup wine (white or rose, still or sparkling) on the stove.  Don't let it boil.  Remove from the heat and add 4 leaves of softened gelatin, a further 1 3/4 cups of wine and 1 tsp lemon juice.  Pour into a shallow dish and refrigerate around 6 hours.  To serve put a mixture of raspberries, strawberries and blueberries into glasses with diced papaya and top with cubes of jelly.
Back home it was radishes and beetroot.  For a change from lamb we tried rump steak with caper, anchovy and rosemary sauce served with shaved veg with a lemony dressing.
For the meat dressing, pound 4-6 anchovies with a clove of garlic using a mortar and pestle.  Add 2 tsp very finely chopped rosemary and pound again.  Add  2 tsp capers, 2 tbsp lemon juice, 2 tbsp olive oil and mix well with salt and pepper.  Cook the rump steak to your liking and brush both sides with a little of the dressing.  Rest then slice and pour over the remaining dressing.
For the vegetables make a dressing with 1 tsp English mustard, 2 tsp honey, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 4 tbsp rapeseed or olive oil and salt & pepper.  Using a mandoline with care not to slice fingers (we have had mandoline incidents here), very finely slice a selection of raw summer vegetables - radishes, beetroot, kohlrabi, courgette.  Trickle over the dressing.
On the side I served a mix of salad leaves including beetroot leaves with a regular vinaigrette, and some freshly baked thyme-flavoured Turkish-style bread (pide) to mop up the juices.  To make the bread, combine 1/2 cup warm water, 1 tsp honey, 3 tbsp olive oil and add to 1 1/2 cups bread flour, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp instant yeast, 1 tbsp chopped thyme.  Combine and knead for a few minutes until soft and smooth.  Leave to rise for an hour then divide into eight pieces, shape into rounds about 1 cm thick and cover with a teatowel to rise again for 20 minutes.  I only needed half the dough so have frozen the rest for another time.  Cook the breads on a grill 3-4 mins each side until golden and puffy.
Still trying to use up the last of the cranberry sauce, we had venison sausages with roasted beetroot and wilted spinach and beetroot leaves.  I cooked the beetroot, peeled and cut into chunks then put in a roasting dish with some olive oil and salt and pepper and thyme.  When done I splashed over a little vincotto.  I wash and slice spinach then just add in batches to a pan over a medium heat.  As the spinach wilts, push it to the back and add another handful.  When it is done stir in a small knob of butter and seasoning.  I often add nutmeg or cumin but on this occasion used only pepper.  Adding beetroot leaves with the spinach is delicious.  Try it.
Thank you to Jean-Marie for roasted radishes with dukkah. We tried them this evening with our aperitif of saffron gin.  The gin was a Christmas gift and I recommend you try it. It has a unique pizazz. The radishes were very interesting and I really liked them.  I have never eaten a cooked radish and I enjoyed the change in texture and depth of flavour.  The dukkah was brilliant and will become our staple recipe I suspect.

Festovers

Last year I was busy with other projects and I let this blog slide.  Some of you were a little judgemental.  I have resolved to do better this year.  However I need you to do your bit.  A little encouragement will spur me on.  Sign on as a follower and participate.  Comment, positive or otherwise, ask questions and share your culinary ideas.
This time of year in our house is all about leftovers.  I like the challenge of slowly clearing the bulging fridge shelves after the excesses of the Christmas festivities.  This year we were a table of only four for the main meal and you might have thought it would be easy.  Not so much.  However as usual we rose to the challenge.  Peter made bread pudding from the left over stuffing bread.  This is not bread and butter pudding which is another dish altogether, but a cake to eat with a cup of tea.  This was a really good idea and saved the bread from the bin but then we had to eat the cake along with the left over summer pudding, Phoebe's festive baking and other sweet treats we were given.  Peter made the pudding with cold tea - I might have used ale myself.
We had our usual boxing day meal of turkey with an asian style slaw. A small cabbage goes a very long way and so there is the challenge of how to finish the cabbage while not ignornig the turkey or ham or nut roast.  We prepared various styles of coleslaw and ate these at lunch with ham or turkey or on one occasion a pork pie from the freezer.
As well as keeping up with the left overs we have had to contend with the garden's produce.  I have been slowly turning flower beds into vegetable beds and we have a beautiful crop of beetroot.  The warm rain seems to have acted on the radishes as a performance enhancing drug and they are growing to alarming proportions.  I made a batch of beetroot relish.  In a largish pan soften 1/2 a finely sliced red onion with 2-3 finely grated raw beetroot - use gloves or the food processor.  Keep the heat very low and if it looks like catching add a few drops of water.  After 40 minutes or so it will be a lovely saucy consistency. Add the zest and juice of a lemon and season well.  You could add 1/4 preserved lenon finely sliced.  Cook down a little more.  This will keep in a jar in the fridge for a couple of weeks, if it lasts that long.  The radishes have been a little more challenging.  I did happen upon a great recipe to make a type of dip with cream cheese (I found a small quantity in the fridge), spring onions, lemon juice and zest, and mint. That was great not only on radishes but just spread on toast or sourdough fresh from the oven.
There was a quantity of pizza dough left from the traditional turkey, cranberry and camembert pizza and that became flat bread served with hummus and beetroot relish. I made a Greek salad which it transpires will benefit from the addition of radishes very thinly sliced.
There was such a tiny bit of cabbage left, I finely sliced it and sauteed with 1/2 finely sliced red onion with a splash of cider vinegar and red wine until soft and added a spoon of cranberry sauce at the end. The result was a mountain of cooked cabbage. I served this with venison sausages from the freezer with beetroot relish and cranberry sauce. We had used all the raw cabbage and now we had a surpus of cooked cabbage.  It was surprisingly delicious mixed through some basmati rice the next night.
But we have done it.  The fridge is clear and we can shop again.  I still need help with those radishes.  Any suggestions?